Chapter 7: The Man with Sunflowers

It was almost noon when Mrs. Alder walked in, her cheeks pink from the sun and her apron smelling faintly of roses.

“Busy morning,” she said, setting her basket of trimmings down. “You two survived?”

“Barely,” Elena said dramatically. “Kaia’s been a silent storm since seven.”

Kaia gave her a look. “Some storms have purpose.”

Mrs. Alder chuckled. “You always did sound poetic when you’re pretending you’re fine.”

Elena grinned. “Told you, Mrs. A. She was thinking about something.”

Kaia sighed, pretending to focus on cleaning the counter. “I think about a lot of things. Mostly how to keep this place from falling apart.”

Mrs. Alder smiled knowingly but said nothing. She began arranging the flowers on the front display - daisies, lilies and of course, the sunflowers. One of them tilted just slightly, brushing her hand.

“You know,” she said thoughtfully, “we had a new visitor this morning.”

Kaia looked up briefly, “Oh?”

“A handsome one,” Mrs. Alder continued, her tone playful. “Tall, polite , eyes that notice things. Bought a bouquet of sunflowers. You don’t see that often.”

Elena gasped, “Wait, sunflowers? Nobody buys those unless they’re for a grand gesture!”

Mrs. Alder smiled, her hands still in the flowers. “He said nothing of the sort. But there was something gentle about him. The kind of man who looks like he carries stories he’ll never tell.”

Kaia gave a small smile. “Maybe he just like flowers.”

“Maybe,’ Mrs. Alder said softly. “But it’s rare, child. Most people pick roses for love or lilies for apology. Sunflowers? They’re for hope. And men who buy hope usually have something they’re not saying.”

Kaia didn’t reply. She turned back to her counter, her mind already elsewhere.

But later, when the day quieted, she caught herself glancing at the sunflowers again - wondering, just for a heartbeat, what kind of man bought light instead of love.